Rfid system with location capability

ABSTRACT

Provided are RFID systems, methods and RFID tags according to various aspects. An infrared (IR) beam, from an IR transmitter, is outputted in a first direction so that an RFID tag with an IR sensor adds a flag to stored data in the RFID tag in response to the RFID tag&#39;s IR sensor detecting the IR beam. An RF interrogation signal is outputted by an RFID reader, and a response is received from the RFID tag to the RF interrogation signal. It is determined whether the flag is contained in the RFID tag&#39;s response to the RF interrogation signal, and if so, the RFID tag is determined to be in the first direction relative to the IR transmitter.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a Continuation of application Ser. No. 14/956,910 filed Dec. 2,2015, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/099,102 filed Dec. 31, 2014. The disclosure of the prior applicationsis hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Handheld or mobile computers are widely used, such as in different fieldmobility environments. For example, these computing devices may be usedby mobile field service and transportation workers to allow differenttypes of mobile operations, such as in-field computing, radio frequencyidentifier (RFID) scanning, barcode scanning, and communication withremote external devices, among others.

For RFID scanning, RFID scanners may use one or more RFID methods fordifferent applications, including for smart cards, supportingmaintenance tasks, identification badges, tracking objects inmanufacturing, retail inventory management, etc. An RFID tag can beattached, e.g., to an inventory object. An RFID apparatus can beconfigured with an RFID reading device including one or more antennas toread the memory of an RFID tag attached to an inventory object.

The RFID apparatus may be a handheld device with integrated RFID readingcapabilities that can read RFID tags from a range of distances, such asduring a retail floor inventory operation. However, one may not knowwhether all physical structures such as retail floor fixtures (and byextension, all items with attached RFID tags) in a given department havebeen inventoried and the subsequent determination of the location of aparticular RFID tagged inventory item can be difficult. For example, itcan be quite time consuming for the user of an RFID apparatus to performretail floor inventory location operations because conventional RFIDdevices may only be capable of providing a coarse or approximatelocation of a particular RFID tag coupled with an item, and in someinstances cannot provide even coarse location information.

Thus, while one benefit of RFID, compared with traditional barcodescanning, is that the user does not need line of sight to the tag inorder to collect data, the absence of the one to one correspondence thatthe line of sight gives the user creates a problem when the user issearching for a particular tagged item. Moreover, as RFID tags becomemore ubiquitous, it is becoming more difficult to know what tags areactually being read.

There is no way to know where tags are specifically, and as such, thereis a need to be able to tell which RFID tags the handheld reader ispointing at.

SUMMARY

To overcome these and other challenges, aspects of various methods andsystems are disclosed herein. For example, exemplary embodiments of thepresent application describe methods and systems to locate RFID tags.The methods and systems are based on using infrared transmitter withnarrow beam mounted on the front of handheld RFID reader. The RFID taghas an infrared (“IR”) sensor and detects if it is illuminated by theinfrared beam from the RFID reader.

In one embodiment, a system may include a transmit antenna to output anRF interrogation signal; at least one receive antenna to receiveresponses to the RF interrogation signal; an IR transmitter configuredto output an IR beam in a first direction, wherein RFID tags having anIR sensor that senses the IR beam add a flag to stored data in the RFIDtag; a processor configured to receive a response to RF interrogationsignal and to determine if the flag is in the response, wherein if theflag is determined to be in the response, the RFID tag is determined tobe in the first direction relative to the IR transmitter.

In another embodiment, a method is provided. In the method, an IR beam,from an IR transmitter, is outputted in a first direction so that anRFID tag with an IR sensor adds a flag to stored data in the RFID tag inresponse to the RFID tag's IR sensor detecting the IR beam. An RFinterrogation signal is outputted by an RFID reader, and a response isreceived from the RFID tag to the RF interrogation signal. It isdetermined whether the flag is contained in the RFID tag's response tothe RF interrogation signal, and if so, the RFID tag is determined to bein the first direction relative to the IR transmitter.

In yet another embodiment, a radio frequency identification (RFID) tagsystem is provided that includes memory containing stored data, at leastone antenna, and an infrared (IR) sensor to detect an IR beam from an IRtransmitter from a first direction. A flag is added to the stored datain the memory in response to the IR sensor detecting the IR beam fromthe IR transmitter from the first direction. One or more antennas of theRFID system receives an RF interrogation signal from a transmit antennaof an RFID reader and output a response containing the stored data fromthe RFID tag system to the RF interrogation signal. The RFID tag systemis determined to be location in the first direction relative to the IRtransmitter in response to determining that the flag is contained in theresponse to the RF interrogation signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a RFID tag location systemaccording to one embodiment.

FIGS. 2A, 2B and 2C schematically illustrate an RFID apparatus accordingto one embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a network-level layout of a data collectionsystem utilizing one or more RFID apparatus according to one embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a component-level layout of an RFIDapparatus according to one embodiment.

FIG. 5 depicts a scanning operation according to one embodiment.

FIG. 6 depicts a scanning area according to one embodiment.

FIG. 7 illustrates a method for determining a location of a RFID tagaccording to one embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The exemplary embodiments described herein provide detail forillustrative purposes and are subject to many variations in structureand design. It should be appreciated, however, that the embodiments arenot limited to a particularly disclosed embodiment shown or described.It is understood that various omissions and substitutions of equivalentsare contemplated as circumstances may suggest or render expedient, butthese are intended to cover the application or implementation withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope of the claims.

Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology usedherein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded aslimiting. The terms “a,” “an,” and “the” herein do not denote alimitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least oneof the referenced object. It will be further understood that the terms“comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification,specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations,elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence oraddition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations,elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Furthermore, as will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspectsof the present disclosure may be embodied as a system, method, orcomputer program product. Accordingly, aspects of various embodimentsmay take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirelysoftware embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code,etc.) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects that mayall generally be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module” or“system.” In addition, aspects of the present disclosure may take theform of a computer program product embodied in one or more computerreadable medium(s) having computer readable program code embodiedthereon.

Any combination of one or more computer readable medium(s) may beutilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signalmedium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readablestorage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic,magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system,apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. Morespecific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readablestorage medium include the following: an electrical connection havingone or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a randomaccess memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber, a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or similar DVD-ROM and BD-ROM, anoptical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitablecombination of the foregoing. In the context of this document, acomputer readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that cancontain, or store a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signalwith computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, inbaseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may takeany of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to,electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. Acomputer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium thatis not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmittedusing any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless,wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination ofthe foregoing. Computer program code for carrying out operations for oneor more embodiments may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages, including an object oriented programming languagesuch as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional proceduralprogramming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similarprogramming languages. The program code may execute entirely on theuser's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alonesoftware package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remotecomputer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latterscenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computerthrough any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or awide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an externalcomputer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet ServiceProvider).

At least some of the present disclosure is described below withreference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods,apparatus (systems) and computer program products according toembodiments described herein. It will be understood that each block ofthe flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations ofblocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can beimplemented by computer program instructions. These computer programinstructions may be provided to a processor of a general purposecomputer, special purpose computer, or other programmable dataprocessing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions,which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmabledata processing apparatus, create means for implementing thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable dataprocessing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instructions whichimplement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer,other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to causea series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, otherprogrammable apparatus or other devices to produce a computerimplemented process such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer or other programmable apparatus provide processes forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

Handheld or portable computing devices can be used in many differentapplications. Accordingly, while various embodiments may be described inconnection with identifying items or inventory in a particularenvironment, the various embodiments are not so limited. For example,various embodiments may be used to identify or locate different types ofRFID tags or items to which RFID tags are coupled.

When RFID scanning is performed, difficulties may arise when searchingfor a particular tagged item because RFID does not require line of sightreading. Accordingly, it may be difficult and time consuming to locate aparticular item coupled with an inventoried RFID tag, resulting infrustration to the user.

Some embodiments of the present application describe systems and methodsto facilitate locating a particular RFID tag, such as locating an RFIDtagged item with a handheld device. In one embodiment, methods andsystems provided herein are based on using infrared transmitter with anarrow beam mounted on the front of handheld RFID reader. The RFID tagmay have an IR sensor and knows if it is illuminated by the infraredbeam from the reader.

In some embodiments, a handheld UHF RFID reader system may include a lowcost IR transceiver to the reader, and an IR sensor included with theRFID tag. If the RFID tag senses the IR from the reader, it flags itsuser data. As a result, the reader will know, out of many tags that itis reading, which ones are directly in front (if IR transceiver on thereader faces forward). The power of the IR transceiver can be set low sothat the signal that reflect off the walls and floors do not trigger theIR sensor on the tag—only the direct beam matters, according to anembodiment.

It should be understood that while various embodiments may be describedin connection with a particular RFID device or scanning for a particulartype of tag, the various embodiments are not limited to such devices orscanning and may be used with different devices for performing scanningfor different types of tags. Additionally, various embodiments may beoperate in different settings or may be used for different applications.For example, one or more embodiments may be used for tag inventory tostore images of tag locations when a determination is made that the RFIDscanner (such as RFID handheld) has crossed or passed by the tag (e.g.,RFID tag passed in front of the scanner). In this mode of operation, apriori knowledge of the tag identification is not needed and images ofthe tags that are read can be stored with the location for later use.

It should be noted that the RFID tag location system and variouscomponents are referred to herein for ease of illustration. However, itshould be understood that the system and various components may beconfigured as any type of RFID scanning system for locating RFID tags indifferent locations and orientations.

One embodiment of a RFID tag location system 100 is shown in FIG. 1. Thesystem 100 may be embodied as or form part of a handheld RFID scanner.For example, the system 100 may be embodied or form part of a mobilecomputing device, such as an Intermec mobile computer available fromHoneywell Scanning and Mobility.

The RFID tag location system 100 can comprise a transmitter 102 havingone or more transmit antennas 104 and a receiver 106 having one or morereceive antennas 108. It should be noted that although one transmitantenna 104 and one receive antenna 108 are illustrated, the system 100can comprise additional transmit or receive antennas 104, 108.

The transmitter 102 and receiver 106 are activated to scan a region ofinterest 134 to acquire RFID tag location information. The transmittingand receiving may be performed using RFID scanning techniques describedherein.

The system 100 can also comprise a controller 110 coupled to thetransmitter 102 and receiver 106. It should be noted that any type ofcommunicative or operative coupling may be used, such as any type ofwireless or wired communication. The controller 110 is configured tocontrol the operation of the transmitter 102 and receiver 106, such asto control the transmissions by the transmit antenna 104 and thereception by the receive antennas 108. In one embodiment, the controller110 is a transmit and receive controller configured to control theradio-frequency (RF) pulses sent to the transmit antenna 102 and thecommunication of signals received by the receive antennas 108. However,as described in more detail herein, the controller is also configured tocontrol other components of the system 100. For example, the controllermay be configured to control an IR transmitter 114 which has a narrowbeamwidth and is directional.

The system 100 can further comprise a processor 112 coupled to thecontroller 110. As described in more detail herein, the processor 112can control the operation of the controller 110 to transmit and receiveas desired or needed. The processor 112 is also configured in variousembodiments to process received signal information, such as responses toRFID inquiries used to determine the location of one or more RFID tagsas described herein.

For example, in one or more embodiments, the system may determine theposition of an RFID tag (which may be coupled to an object or item) thathas been contacted with an IR transmission from the IR transceiver 114.The position of the RFID tag is determined because the RFID tag includesan IR sensor 150 so that when the IR sensor 150 senses the IRtransmission from the IR transceiver 114, the RFID tag 132 a then flags(e.g., appends one or more bytes) pre-stored data. In this regard, whenthe RFID tag data is read by the receiver 106 (in response to the RFIDinterrogation signals sent by the transmitter 102), the flag isrecognized as part of or associated with the read data from the RFID tag132 a. As such, because the flag is detected and because the user knowswhere the IR transceiver 114 was pointed, the user then knows that thedirection of the RFID tag was in the same direction as the IRtransceiver was pointed.

The processor 114 is configured to receive the RFID tag response and/orread information from the response to the RFID interrogation signals.

Referring again to the system 100, a memory 120, which may be any typeof electronic storage device, can be coupled to the processor 112 (orform part of the processor 112). The processor 112 may access the memory112 to obtain stored image information 122 from the received response,including the flag from the RFID tag 132 a, that aids or facilitateslocating the RFID tags 132, such as by presenting the user with anindication of the location or direction information to help more easilyidentify the physical location of the RFID tag 132 a or tags 132 a, 132b that has sensed the IR transceiver.

The system 100 can also comprise a display 124 and user input device 128coupled to the processor 112 to allow user interaction with the system100. For example, the display 124 can allow visual guidance to locateone or more of the items 132 and/or by displaying flag-identifying data126 of the RFID tags 132 associated with the items 130.

While FIG. 1 illustrates a particular connection arrangement of thevarious components, a skilled artisan would appreciate the fact thatother connection arrangements may be made that are within the scope ofthis disclosure. Additionally, the various components may be housedwithin the same or different physical units and the separation ofcomponents within FIG. 1 is merely for illustration.

The system 100 can also comprise one or more communication subsystems toallow communication with external devices, such as networks, printers,etc. Thus, additional components may form part of or communicate withthe system 100.

In some embodiments, the system 100 may be embodied as part of a RFIDapparatus 200 is shown in FIGS. 2A (front panel view), 2B (oblique panelview) and 2C (bottom panel view). The RFID apparatus 200 can comprise ahousing 202 within which other components of RFID reader 200 can bedisposed. An LCD screen display with touch screen sensor 206 can bedisposed on a front panel 208. Also disposed on the front panel 208 canbe an operation LED 204, a scan LED 210, and keyboard 212 including ascan key 214 and navigation keys 216. An imaging window 218 can bedisposed on the top panel of the housing 202. Disposed on the side panel(best viewed in FIG. 2B) can be an infrared transmission port 220, anaccess door to a secure digital (SD) memory interface 222, an audio jack224, and a hand strap 226. Disposed on the bottom panel (best viewed inFIG. 1C) can be a multi-pin mechanical connector 228 and a hand strapclip 230.

The infrared transmission port 220 may be placed on the top panel of thehousing 202 of the RFID reader instead of on the side (as shown in FIG.2B) to allow the IR transmission from the IR transceiver 114. This isshown in FIG. 2C which shows the alternate location of the infraredtransmission port 220. Additionally, in various embodiments, theinfrared transmission port 220 allows the IR transceiver 114 (shown inFIG. 1) within the housing 202 to be behind the infrared transmissionport 220 for protection to have a field of view in front of the RFIDapparatus 200.

Also disposed on the bottom panel (or alternatively on the top panel)can be an RFID antenna housing and an RFID read device (which may caninclude the transmitter 102 and receiver 106 shown in FIG. 1) within thehousing 202.

While FIGS. 1A-1C illustrate some embodiments of a handheld system, askilled artisan would appreciate that other types and form factors ofterminal housings are within the scope of this disclosure.

In some embodiments, the system 100 and/or RFID apparatus 200 can beincorporated in a data collection system. The data collection system,schematically shown in FIG. 3, can include a plurality of routers 302a-302 z, a plurality of access points 304 a-304, and a plurality of RFIDapparatus 200 a-200 z in communication with a plurality ofinterconnected networks 308 a-308 z. In one embodiment, the plurality ofnetworks 308 a-308 z can include at least one wireless communicationnetwork. In one or more embodiments, one or more of the RFID apparatus200 can comprise a communication interface which can be used by the RFIDapparatus 200 to connect to the one or more of the networks 308 a-308 z.In one embodiment, the communication interface can be provided by awireless communication interface.

One or more of the RFID apparatus 200 can establish communication with ahost computer 310. In one embodiment, network frames can be exchanged bythe RFID apparatus 200 and the host computer 310 via one or more routers302, base stations, and other infrastructure elements. In anotherembodiment, the host computer 310 can communicate with the RFIDapparatus 200 via a network 308, such as a local area network (LAN). Inyet another embodiment, the host computer 310 can communicate with theRFID apparatus 200 via a network 308, such as a wide area network (WAN).A skilled artisan should appreciate that other methods of providinginterconnectivity between the RFID apparatus 200 and the host computer310 relying upon LANs, WANs, virtual private networks (VPNs), and/orother types of network are within the scope of this disclosure.

In one embodiment, the communications between the RFID apparatus 200 andthe host computer 310 can comprise a series of HTTP requests andresponses transmitted over one or more TCP connections. In oneembodiment, the communications between the RFID apparatus 200 and thehost computer 310 can comprise VoIP traffic transmitted over one or moreTCP and/or UDP ports. A skilled artisan should appreciate that usingother transport and application level protocols is within the scope ofthis disclosure.

A component-level diagram of one embodiment of an RFID apparatus 200will now be described with reference to FIG. 4. The RFID apparatus 200can comprise at least one microprocessor 402 and a memory 404 (which maybe embodied as the memory 120 shown in FIG. 1), both coupled to a systembus 406. The microprocessor 402 can be provided by a general purposemicroprocessor or by a specialized microprocessor (e.g., an ASIC). Inone embodiment, the RFID apparatus 200 can comprise a singlemicroprocessor which may be referred to as a central processor (CPU). Inanother embodiment, the RFID apparatus 200 can comprise two or moremicroprocessors, for example, a CPU providing some or most of the RFIDapparatus functionality and a specialized microprocessor performing somespecific functionality (e.g., tag location determination as describedherein). A skilled artisan should appreciate that other schemes ofprocessing tasks distributed among two or more microprocessors arewithin the scope of this disclosure. The memory 404 can comprise one ormore types of memory, including but not limited to random-access-memory(RAM), non-volatile RAM (NVRAM), etc.

The RFID apparatus 200 can further comprise a communication interface408 communicatively coupled to the system bus 406. In one embodiment,the communication interface 408 may be by a wireless communicationinterface. The wireless communication interface can be configured tosupport, for example, but not limited to, the following protocols: atleast one protocol of the IEEE 802.11/802.15/802.16 protocol family, atleast one protocol of the HSPA/GSM/GPRS/EDGE protocol family, TDMAprotocol, UMTS protocol, LTE protocol, and/or at least one protocol ofthe CDMA/IxEV-DO protocol family.

A module 410 is an additional modular component that can be replacedwith upgraded or expanded modules and is coupled between the system bus308 and the communication interface 408. This module 410 is compatiblewith, for example, auxiliary hard drives (including flash memory), RAM,communication interfaces, etc.

The RFID apparatus 200 can further comprise a camera system 412 (whichmay be embodied as the imager 114 in FIG. 1) and an image interpretationand processing module 414. In one embodiment, the image interpretationand processing module 414 receives image data from the camera system 412and processes the information for use in determining the location of oneor more RFID tags and presenting an image corresponding to thatdetermined location. In another embodiment, the processing module 414,which is coupled to the system bus 406, exchanges data and controlinformation with the microprocessor 402 or the memory 404.

The RFID apparatus 200 can further comprise a keyboard interface 416 anda display adapter 418, both also coupled to the system bus 406. The RFIDapparatus 200 can further comprise a battery 420. In one embodiment, thebattery 420 may be a replaceable or rechargeable battery pack.

The RFID apparatus 200 can further comprise a GPS receiver 422 tofacilitate providing location information relating to the RFID apparatus200. The RFID apparatus 200 can also comprise at least one connector 424configured to receive, for example, a subscriber identity module (SIM)card. The RFID apparatus 200 can further comprise one or more IRtransceiver device 426, provided by, for example, but not limited to,the IR transceiver 114. The RFID apparatus 200 still further cancomprise one or more RFID reader 428 provided by, for example, but notlimited to, an RFID reading device, a bar code reading device, or a cardreading device. In one embodiment, the RFID apparatus 200 can beconfigured to receive RFID scanning information, such as responsesreceived from activated RFID tags.

It should be appreciated that devices that read bar codes, read RFIDtags, or read cards bearing encoded information may read more than oneof these categories while remaining within the scope of this disclosure.For example, a device that reads bar codes may include a card reader,and/or RFID reader; a device that reads RFID tags may also be able toread bar codes and/or cards; and a device that reads cards may be ableto also read bar codes and/or RFID. For further clarity, the primaryfunction of a device may involve any of these functions in order to beconsidered such a device; for example, a cellular telephone, smartphone,or PDA that is capable of reading bar codes or RFID tags is a devicethat reads bar codes or RFID tags for purposes of this disclosure.

The RFID reader 428 may be configured to read RFID tags and acquiredifferent types of information, for example, backscattered phaseinformation as described herein and communicate such information to themicroprocessor 402 or memory 404. In another embodiment, the RFID reader428 can be configured to adjust the RFID transmit power level. Signalstransmitted from or received by the RFID apparatus 200 may be providedvia an antenna 430.

In some embodiments, the RFID apparatus 200 includes an inertialmeasurement unit (IMU) 432 (containing one or more of a 3-axisaccelerometer, a 3-axis magnetometer and a 3-axis gyroscope sensor whichmay provide orientation information) utilized to record the position ofthe RFID apparatus 200 in three dimensional space. The IMU 432 alsoassists the RFID apparatus 200 in determining the orientation thereof,during the process of scanning for RFID tags as the RFID apparatus 200moves through space. The orientation of the RFID apparatus 200 includesthe position of the RFID apparatus 200 itself relative to a physicalstructure.

The RFID apparatus 200 can be at a given position, for example (x₁, y₁,z₁) but the orientation of the RFID apparatus at this position may vary.The RFID apparatus 200 may be held upright at a position to define oneorientation, but the RFID apparatus 200 may also be moved to an anglerelative to any direction in three dimensional space (while the positionof the RFID apparatus 200 is unchanged). This movement represents achange in orientation. In one embodiment, during the scanning process,both the position and the orientation of the RFID apparatus 200 arecalculated by the camera system 412 and/or the IMU 432 and the resultantdata is stored and may be used to facilitate locating an item 130 (shownin FIG. 1) or positioning the RFID apparatus 200 as described in moredetail herein.

As described herein, various embodiments allow for the determination anddisplay of location information to facilitate locating an RFID tag 132(shown in FIG. 1). For example, a user may enter a desired item 130(shown in FIG. 1) to be located and a scanning process is thereafterautomatically initiated or initiated by the front panel scan key 214(shown in FIG. 2). During scanning, image information is acquired by thecamera system 412 and may be displayed in real-time or subsequent toscanning to facilitate locating an item 130 (shown in FIG. 1) based onthe identification (e.g., ID number) of an RFID tag 132 (shown inFIG. 1) that is read by the EIR device 428, which may be facilitated byusing information relating to the position or orientation of the RFIDapparatus 200 (e.g., guide a user to position the RFID apparatus 200 forproper scanning).

One or more embodiments include a method 700 as illustrated in FIG. 7.With reference also to FIGS. 1-6, the method 700 may be implemented orperformed using one or more systems described herein, such as the system100 and/or RFID apparatus 200. It should be noted that the steps of themethod 700 may be performed in a different order and some steps may beperformed concurrently. Additionally, some steps may be repeated.

The method 700 includes providing a handheld device with an RFIDtransceiver and IR transceiver (similar to those discussed above), in702. Referring to FIG. 5, as shown, a handheld RFID reader has anantenna and an IR transmitter. The IR transmitter has an IR transmitterdiode that outputs a narrow infrared beam only in one direction. Theantenna of the RFID reader transmits electromagnetic waves (RF waves).

On the other side, the RFID tag is provided that has the IR sensor, suchas an IR diode, so that if the IR transmission of the IR transceiver issensed by the IR sensor, a flag is added to the stored RFID tag data andwill be transmitted during a response, as provided by 704.

The RFID tag also includes an antenna for receiving the electromagneticwaves from the RFID reader. The RFID tag also includes an IR sensor(such as an IR receiver diode), which is configured to receive thenarrow IR beam outputted from the IR transmitter diode only if the IRbeam is directionally pointed to the IR sensor (otherwise the IR sensordoes not sense the IR beam even though there may be reflections off ofother objects). Thus, the IR beam has to be directly hitting the IRsensor for the sensor to detect the IR beam. This is illustrated in FIG.6 where only the IR sensor of RFID tag 3 senses the IR beam 602 pointedin direction D″ while at the same time the RFID antenna is outputting aradiation pattern 604.

In 706, the IR transceiver (and hence the handheld device) is pointed ina first direction (e.g., Direction “D” in FIG. 6) while a narrow beam ofIR transmission is output, as shown in FIG. 6 and while an RFIDinterrogation signal is output by the RFID reader, as provided by 708.

In 710, if no tags respond, the method may revert back to 708;otherwise, if a response is received, the method continues to 712 whereit is determined whether the RFID response includes the flag thatindicates the IR sensor of the RFID tag sensed the IR transmitter. Ifso, the method proceeds to 714 where the system determines the directionof the RFID tag is the same as where the transceiver was pointed.Otherwise, the system determines that the RFID tag did not sense the IRtransmitter and is located in a different direction, and the method maycontinue back to block 708 after the IR transmitter is adjusted to adifferent direction to determine if the RFID tag is in the differentdirection.

It should be noted that the system 100 can comprise one or moremicroprocessors (which may be embodied as the processor 112) and amemory, such as the memory 120, coupled via a system bus. Themicroprocessor can be provided by a general purpose microprocessor or bya specialized microprocessor (e.g., an ASIC). In one embodiment, thesystem can comprise a single microprocessor which can be referred to asa central processor (CPU). In another embodiment, the system 100 cancomprise two or more microprocessors, for example, a CPU providing someor most of the scanning functionality and a specialized microprocessorperforming some specific functionality. A skilled artisan wouldappreciate the fact that other schemes of processing tasks distributionamong two or more microprocessors are within the scope of thisdisclosure. The memory can comprise one or more types of memory,including but not limited to: random-access-memory (RAM), non-volatileRAM (NVRAM), etc.

It should be noted that, for example, the various embodiments canprovide communication using different standards and protocols. Forexample, the wireless communication can be configured to support, forexample, but not limited to, the following protocols: at least oneprotocol of the IEEE 802.11/802.15/802.16 protocol family, at least oneprotocol of the HSPA/GSM/GPRS/EDGE protocol family, TDMA protocol, UMTSprotocol, LTE protocol, and/or at least one protocol of the CDMA/IxEV-DOprotocol family.

The flowcharts and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof code, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be notedthat each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, andcombinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchartillustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-basedsystems which perform the specified functions or acts, or combinationsof special purpose hardware and computer instructions.

The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of anymeans or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended toinclude any structure, material, or act for performing the function incombination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. Thedescription of the present disclosure has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive orlimited to embodiments in the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the artwithout departing from the scope and spirit of embodiments of thedisclosure. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to bestexplain the principles of embodiments and practical application, and toenable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand embodimentswith various modifications as are suited to the particular usecontemplated.

The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments have been presentedfor purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended tobe exhaustive or to limit the embodiments to the precise formsdisclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possiblein light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen anddescribed in order to best explain principles and practical applicationsthereof, and to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilizethe various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to theparticular use contemplated. It is understood that various omissions andsubstitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstances maysuggest or render expedient, but these are intended to cover theapplication or implementation without departing from the spirit or scopeof the claims. The following claims are in no way intended to limit thescope of embodiments to the specific embodiments described herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a processor; an imaging unitcoupled to the processor, the imaging unit comprising: one of an imagerand an IR transmitter to locate a radio frequency identification (RFID)tag, wherein the imager is configured to capture an image of a RFID tagand the IR transmitter is configured to output an IR beam in a firstdirection, the IR beam being operative to add a flag to stored RFID datain the RFID tag; a transmit antenna, coupled to the processor, to outputan RF interrogation signal; a receive antenna, coupled to the processor,to receive a response containing the stored data from an RFID tag to theRF interrogation signal; a memory, coupled to the processor, to storedata corresponding to RFID tag received in the response to the RFinterrogation signal; and a display, coupled to the processor, thedisplay configured to display navigational aids to locate the RFID tagbased on one of the flagged data and the captured image associated withthe RFID tag.
 2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the system isa RFID reader device and the IR transmitter is located at a frontportion of RFID reader and wherein the IR transmitter is configured tooutput narrow IR beams.
 3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein theIR transmitter operates in a low power mode to avoid any signal causeddue to reflections from objects except the IR beam to trigger an IRsensor of the RFID tag.
 4. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein theprocessor is to determine a passing of a RFID tag on an item withrespect to the system, in an inventory comprising plurality of itemswith RFID tags located on the items, based on the first direction of theIR beam outputted by the IR transmitter with respect to the RFID taglocated on the item.
 5. The system as claimed in claim 1, comprising aGlobal positioning system (GPS) receiver to provide a locationinformation of the system.
 6. The system as claimed in claim 1,comprising a connector to receive a subscriber identity module (SIM)card.
 7. The system as claimed in claim 1, comprising an Inertialmeasurement unit (IMU) including at least one of an accelerometer,gyroscope sensor, and magnetometer to provide orientation informationand to record position of the system while scanning RFID tags.
 8. Thesystem as claimed in claim 1, comprising an input unit including a userinput and a display to input information related to an item for scanningand to automatically initiate scanning based on the inputtedinformation.
 9. A method comprising: outputting an infrared (IR) beam,from an IR transmitter, in a first direction so that an IR sensor of anRFID tag receiving the IR beam adds a flag to stored data in the RFIDtag in response to the IR sensor detecting the IR beam; outputting an RFinterrogation signal by an RFID reader; receiving a response from theRFID tag to the RF interrogation signal; determining whether the flag iscontained in the RFID tag's response to the RF interrogation signal;determining the RFID tag to be in the first direction relative to the IRtransmitter in response to determining that the flag is contained in theRFID tag's response to the RF interrogation signal; and displayingnavigational aids to locate the RFID tag based on the flagged dataassociated with the RFID tag.
 10. The method as claimed in claim 9further comprising, operating the IR transmitter in a low power transmitmode to avoid any signal caused due to reflections from objects exceptthe IR beam to trigger an IR sensor of the RFID tag.
 11. The method asclaimed in claim 9, wherein the method for scanning the RFID tagcomprises, receiving an input for scanning an item containing the RFIDtag and automatically initiating the scanning of the item based on thereceiving of the input.
 12. The method as claimed in claim 9, furthercomprising determining that the RFID tag is located in a direction otherthan in the first direction relative to the IR transmitter in responseto determining that the flag is not contained in the RFID tag's responseto the RF interrogation signal.
 13. The method as claimed in claim 9,wherein the outputting the RF interrogation signal by the RFID readeroccurs after the outputting of the IR beam.
 14. The method as claimed inclaim 9, wherein the determining whether the flag is contained in theRFID tag's response comprises: determining that the stored data has beenreceived and comparing the RFID tag's stored data with a predeterminedflag that is stored on the RFID reader.
 15. A system comprising: a RFIDtag comprising: a memory containing stored data; an infrared (IR) sensorto detect an IR beam in a first direction, wherein a flag is added tothe stored data in the memory in response to the IR sensor detecting theIR beam; and at least one antenna to receive the RF interrogation signaland to output a response containing the stored data in response to thereceiving of the RF interrogation signal; and, a RFID reader comprising:a processor; an imaging unit coupled to the processor, the imaging unitcomprising: one of an imager and an IR transmitter to locate a radiofrequency identification (RFID) tag, wherein the imager is configured tocapture an image of the RFID tag and the IR transmitter is configured tooutput the IR beam in the first direction, the IR beam operative to addthe flag to stored RFID data in the RFID tag; a transmit antenna,coupled to the processor, to output the RF interrogation signal; areceive antenna, coupled to the processor, to receive the responsecontaining the stored data from an RFID tag to the RF interrogationsignal; a reader memory, coupled to the processor, to store datacorresponding to RFID tag received in the response to the RFinterrogation signal; and a display, coupled to the processor, thedisplay configured to display navigational aids to locate the RFID tagbased on one of the flagged data and the captured image associated withthe RFID tag.
 16. The system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the IRtransmitter is located at a front portion of the RFID reader and whereinthe IR transmitter is configured to output narrow IR beams.
 17. Thesystem as claimed in claim 15, wherein the IR transmitter operates in alow power mode to avoid any signal caused due to reflections fromobjects except the IR beam to trigger the IR sensor of the RFID tag. 18.The system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the processor is to determinea passing of the RFID reader with respect to the RFID tag, based on thefirst direction of the IR beam outputted by the IR transmitter withrespect to the RFID tag.
 19. The system as claimed in claim 15,comprising an Inertial measurement unit (IMU) including at least one ofan accelerometer, gyroscope sensor, and magnetometer to provideorientation information and to record position of the system whilescanning RFID tags.
 20. The system as claimed in claim 15, comprising aninput unit including a user input and the display, to input informationrelated to an item for scanning and to automatically initiate scanningbased on the inputted information.